Security is a process. If that process is made easier for some users by using NAT, then it's a benefit. Home users can't manage firewalls effectively. NAT is a good method (even if flawed) to protect some classes of users. Is it perfect? No. But that's why you also have other protections at other layers (host-based firewall, virus scanners, etc.)

Incorrect. NAT does have a security benefit. Unless ports are opened, there is no direct inbound access into the backend subnet. Yes, firewalls exist and can protect IPv6, but having a NAT simplifies security for most home users.

In one sense I disagree of the need for solid Linux skills. The rise of short term systems (in general, DevOps) means that you don't need to be concerned with the inner workings of the system and you just use something like chef to configure the system on an as-needed basis. You won't care how long the system is stable because it'll only be around for a few hours. After that it's destroyed only to be recreated later on. You can build entire systems without even enabling SSH and having interactive access.

On the other hand, there is still a need for qualified people since not everyone has bought into DevOps. They want systems that exist for years with little to no unexpected downtime. I see this as a bit of a pendulum swinging back at some point. Not sure when.

In return for getting a monopoly in a town, the cable company set up local access channels, gave free cable TV to schools and town offices, likely gave free Internet to all those areas too. The money to pay those things needs to come from somewhere - either you pay more taxes or you pay more on the cable bill. We're now at the point where all these things have been established for years and the cable companies have contracts with towns granting them monopoly status for the length of the contract. My town now has competition since I can choose between Comcast and FIOS but you can't realistically have a brand new cable company come in and offer service - there's limited amount of space on telephone poles. Maybe we move to a model where Comcast offers the physical layer as some sort of Ethernet-like protocol and customers get to choose their Internet/Cable/phone from one of multiple providers.

Now that his series from the 90s is on Netflix, I noticed that he used Metric for all his measurements. Moving metric would eventually cut the number of wrenches/sockets I need in half and require fewer trips to the toolbox (@$%$# metric....#$$# nope imperial...)